God has given us one book that can change the entire direction of our lives, the Bible.

And in this study, journeying through scriptures, we will take a brief big-picture look at every book of the Bible, tracing God's unfolding story

from Genesis to Revelation. Our prayer is that this journey will stir your heart to open God's

word daily. Let's join Scott Pauli for today's study.

The Lord Jesus said to his followers that the spirit truly is willing, but the flesh is weak. Are you ever surprised at how spiritual you can be one moment and how fleshly you can be the

next? How you can walk in victory and sense the presence of God, and then in the very next moment

have the most awful thoughts, say the most awful things. How is that possible?

May I say to you, that's not new at all. As a matter of fact, you see that sad cycle repeated

over and over again in the example of the children of Israel. We've come in our study

journeying through scripture to the book of judges. Now, you'll remember in our last study,

we journeyed through Joshua. Joshua was full of victory, but judges is full of defeat. In Joshua,

there was progress, but in judges decline.

In Joshua, faith, but in judges unbelief.

In Joshua, joy, but in judges sorrow.

In Joshua, freedom, but in judges, bondage.

Does that sound familiar to you?

Does it sound like the great struggle between the flesh and spirit in your own life?

At one moment we're heavenly minded, it seems, and the next moment we're earthly minded?

Well, why do we move from Joshua to judges? Why do we go from such victory and blessing in the land of Canaan following the Lord to such defeat and such conflict in the book of

judges? Well the answer is given twice in the book of judges. The key verse is actually given

in two different places, both near the end of the book. The first is in Judges chapter 17 and

verse 6, where the Bible says in those days there was no king in Israel, but every man did that

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